Two churches from different eras resurface in Siponto

In the 2026 excavation campaign carried out in Siponto, in the territory of Manfredonia, two churches from different eras have come to light: a place of worship dating back to the 5th-6th century and a medieval church. This is reported by Stato Quotidiano and L’Attacco, both with origins in the universities involved in the excavation and in the concession granted by the Ministero della Cultura: two independent sources confirming the discovery.

The campaign is directed by Giovanni De Venuto and Giuliano Volpe of the Università di Bari, together with Roberto Goffredo and Maria Turchiano of the Università di Foggia, under concession from the Ministero della Cultura. About 70 people took part in the dig, including students, doctoral candidates and specialization students from various Italian universities, a number that testifies to the educational as well as scientific scale of the project.

On October 11th an open day was held in the archaeological area, an occasion on which the results of the campaign were presented to the public. The initiative made it possible to show directly on site the remains of the two places of worship brought to light during the year, offering visitors direct access to the newly excavated structures and to the work still underway on the ground.

The coexistence of two churches built centuries apart on the same site reflects the historical stratification of the Siponto area, where the late antique settlement and the medieval one overlapped over time, leaving distinct traces in the subsoil. The 2026 excavation campaign helped document this stratification through the coordinated work of four universities and dozens of participants, under the supervision of the project’s scientific directors. The two reference universities, Bari and Foggia, carried out the project as part of the concession granted by the Ministero della Cultura, which regulates access to and excavation procedures in the archaeological area.